Loom-harness.



No. 795,368. PATENTED JULY 25, 1905.

G. W. RENKEL.

LOOM HARNESS.

APPLICATION FILED IBB. 21,1904

ANDREW n GRAHAM m. WOTD-LITHOGHAIHEBJ. WASHINCTOMRC.

UNITED STATES PATENT @FFIQE.

LOOlVl-HARNESS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 25, 1905.

Application filed February 27, 1904. Serial No. 195,517.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE \V. RENKEL, a citizen of the United States, resid mg at 82 Keen street, in the city of Paterson, in the county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Loom-Harness, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to thread-harness, and is intended to overcome certain difficulties which are incident to the manufacture and use of thread-harness which is made in continuous widths.

The objects of my invention are to produce a new article of manufacture consisting of a contractible and extensible fiber loom-harness; to produce such a harness that may be manufactured in very great lengths and kept in stock from which pieces of any desired length may be cut off as required by the trade without injury to the heddles; to produce a harness which may be pieced to make a wider harness, thus enabling a manufacturer to use a harness as long as it is fit for use by cutting a piece off or adding a piece to it; to produce a harness in which the heddles may be arranged as many to the inch as required and in which the life of the heddle is also prolonged by reducing the friction occurring during the operation of the harness-shafts. A great saving both in harness and warp is accomplished by the staggered arrangement of the knotted portion of the eyes in the heddles. This is very important. as the friction of the heddles and warp-threads is materially reduced.

Other advantages will be obvious from the following description of my invention.

In the drawings similar letters of reference indicate like parts in the different figures.

Figure 1 shows portions of two groups of heddles, seven in a group, secured to a straight binding-cord or border. Fig. 2 shows similar groups secured to the binding-cord, the cord being wound spiral fashion around and about a suitable rod, wire, cord, or other support, the spiral coils of the binding-cord or border being spread out or extended. Fig. 3 shows a portion of a harness, shafts, bars or rods in supports on said shafts, some of the heddles being omitted, the coils or loops of the border or binding-cord being less extended than in Fig. 2, the knots in the eyes of the heddles being arranged in two horizontal planes and showing two means of preventing the spreading and contraction of the loops or coils and the heddles secured thereto. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view through Fig. 3. Fig. 4 is a view showing the coils less extended and the heddles somewhat closer together than in any of the other figures, the spaces between the heddles or groups of heddles in the various figures being exaggerated to clearly illustrate my invention; and Fig. 5 shows a portion of a harness of the usual construction now in vogue.

In Fig. 5, A and A, the top and bottom shafts, pass through the heddles C, which are secured to the upper and lower border or binding-cord G and G, a certain number of heddles to the inch. The harness thus constructed is made to order containing the number of heddles to the inch as required by the manufacturer for weaving goods of a certain width, and it is neither contractible nor extensible. It cannot be used for weaving goods of a greater width, and the knots (Z in the eyes D of the heddles are all in the same horizontal plane. which causes considerable friction during the operation of the shafts of harness. It is also impossible to increase the number of heddles to the inch in this harness. If wider goods are to be woven, the narrow harness must be thrown aside and a new and wider harness must be made for the purpose.

In my harness I employ the usual shafts A and A; but I weave, knit, or braid my heddles in groups of two or more separated by spaces in any suitable manner to the border or binding-cords B and B. The cords B and B may be wound spiral fashion around a suitable bar or rod (a or a and are sized and stiflened by any process to cause them to assume the shape of a spiral spring and to have the contractibility and extensibility like to that of such a spring. The sizing and stiffening of the binder-cords cause them to maintain their flexible and spring-like character, so that when they contract the heddles will be closer together and more of them to the inch than when they are extended. Thus with my harness the number of heddles to the inch may be greatly varied, and there is ample space betiveen the groups of heddles c, c, 0 c 0', and 0 the binder-cords B and B may be cut or spliced or tied. between any two groups of heddles without detriment to the harness. The bars or rods (4 and a when used are passed through the coils of the spiral border or binding-cords B and B and may be provided with holes or recesses 0, into which a split pin a or other securing means may be inserted to confine a certain number of heddles within a certain. space. My flexible, contractible, and extensible harness may, hovever, be used with various contrivances other than said bars or rods (4 and a with equally practical results. For instance, my threadharness may be supported solely upon the harness-shaft, which is adapted to enter and pass between the front and rear threads of each heddle, and a common means may be used, the twine d, which is passed through the openings (Pin the shafts, to confine a certain number of heddles within a certain space. A cord or strand of any other suitable material might be substituted for the rods (.0 and (1/, although a smooth bar might be preferable. However, many changes and modifications may be made both in the construction of my thread-harness and the means for supporting it without departing from the broad scope and spirit of my invention. The advantages of contractibility and extensibility possessed by my harness and its selvagc-binders will prevent much loss and obviate many difficulties arising from the use of the harness now in vogue.

Fig. 5 shows harness now in common use, in which the eyes D of the heddles are in alinement, and the knots (Z, which are made in forming the eyes, are also in perfect alinement, whereas in my harness the knots are in two horizontal planes alternating, one knot in the upper plane, the next knot in the lower plane, and so on. The result of this arrangement of the knotting of the eyes in the heddles is that, only one-half of the knots pass ing at one time during the operating of the harness, there is less friction and wear on the heddles and the warp threads. By this method of uniting the heddles in my harness so that the eyes, with their knots, alternate in two horizontal planes 1 am enabled to get along with fewer shafts of harness to a set. For instance, if it were necessary in the oldstyle harness to have sixteen shafts to a set of harness, twenty-five heddles per inch on a shaft, which would mean four hundred threads per inch to the harness, by my method it would only be necessary to have one-half as many shafts, or eight shafts, with fifty heddles per inch per shaft or four hundred threads to the inch, so that with my harness I only require half as many shafts and can accommodate twice as many heddles per inch per shaft.

It is obvious that if a large number of heddles say fifty or sixty to the inch are on one shaft and there are ten shafts to the set of harness and all the knots are in the one plane, as they always have been in thread-har- I ness, the passing of the knots through the l warp will cut the warp-threads, and it is equally obvious that my harness overcomes that danger, does away with a number of shafts, saves room, simplifies weaving, makes it more economical, and increases the production per loom.

The contractible and extensible selvagebinder permits the weaver to vary the number of heddles per inch as required. Some of the advantages of my fibrous selvagebinder are that it can be woven in with my threadheddles and be made to give better results than a wire or metal selvage-binder. Fun thermorc, the harness can be made and kept in stock, so that any desired length can be sold, and it may be cut up into pieces as required without detriment thereto, or pieces may be joined together, according to the number of heddles required to ashaft or harness.

It is obvious that the heddles are so connected with the lower portion of the spiral coils that when the spiral coils are drawn together the heddles are brought closer together, and when the spiral coils are extended the heddles are drawn apart, and there will be fewer of the heddles to the inch than when the spiral coils are contracted.

\Vith this description of my invention, what I claim is 1. In a thread loom-harness, a plurality of contractible and extensible sets of fibrous heddles, having eyes knotted therein and arranged in two planes, substantially as shown and for the purpose specified.

2. In a fibrous loom-harness, the combination with a spirally-coiled contractible and extensible fibrous selvage-binder. of fibrous heddles secured thereto in groups.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a contractible and extensible loom-harness. comprising fibrous heddles united to spirallyformed fibrous selvage-binders.

4E. contractible and extensible fibrous selvage-binders, in combination with fibrous heddles united thereto, harness-shafts and means for confining the desired number of heddles on the shafts within a certain space.

A loom-harness, comprising groups of fibrous heddles, in alinement, the eyes of adjacent heddles being in two horizontal planes, and spirally-coiled fibrous binders united to said heddles, forming contractible and extensible selvages.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE \V. RENKEL.

\Vi tnesses:

LIZZI e MoCoNvILL u, ()rnxrmns STUART. 

